A skillfully crafted historical suspense story with all the necessary elements.
By Stephanie Edd ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A
Edd’s 1947-set thriller follows the footsteps of Philip Marlow and Sam Spade as Mel Gance’s San Francisco office is visited by Miss Cecilia Le Cleur, who has “all the curves of Lombard Street with no stop signs in sight.” The Le Cleurs are wealthy, but her father, August, was found shot to death in his study and her brother, Stephan, has gone missing. This is not the first tragedy to strike the family; years ago her mother and sister perished in a Paris hotel fire. Gance must determine if Cecilia is a grieving orphan or a femme fatale—or a bit of both—and find her father’s killer and her missing brother. August Le Cleur was a hotel developer, but he had a wild side, connected to an illegal casino and to a gangster named Rolland Zaslow. Gance has a formidable sidekick, his secretary, Grace “Ace” Springfield, who is more than just a typist and filer. There’s also cabbie Daphne Markos, who can crack wise and lose a tail on a moment’s notice. Mel finds himself half in love with Cecilia, despite his better judgement. After many twists and turns, the real villain is finally revealed. Some readers may guess the ending intuitively, though the finer points may be lost despite Mel’s explications. Edd has written a legitimate whodunit but also a sendup of the genre, taking readers back to the world of Hammett and Chandler, with a world-weary shamus, cigarettes and fedoras, elegant and mysterious clients, and the fog always rolling in. Perhaps Edd will send Mel and Ace on more adventures…that would be just swell.
Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 355
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: yesterday